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Lake of the Woods Fishing Report: Walleyes, Perch, and Smallmouth Bass Biting Strong
Artificial Lure here with your fishing report for Lake of the Woods, Minnesota, on Wednesday, May 28, 2025.
We’ve had another classic week up here on the big lake, with a string of fronts leaving anglers with a mix of bluebird days and a few windier sessions. Sunrise this morning was bright and early at 5:19 AM, with sunset coming at 9:16 PM. Minnows and jigs continue to rule the roost this season, and the water’s warming up nicely as we move toward summer—the bite is strong.
Starting with the south shore, walleye action has held up despite the weather changing every other day. Most folks are anchoring up or spot-locking and working a jig tipped with a frozen or live shiner minnow. Vertical jigging right off the edges has been productive at 15 to 22 feet. Some groups have filled their limits of walleyes and saugers, with many nice slot fish in the mix. Remember, you can keep six in combination, with up to four being walleyes and a slot of 19.5 to 28 inches protected—all those need to go back[1][4][5].
The Rainy River has slowed just a little since the opener, but there are still good numbers of eating-size walleyes, and sturgeon anglers wrapped up another excellent spring—local talk is that some real dinosaurs came over the rail before the season closed May 15. Nightcrawlers and minnows are both good options if you’re targeting anything mixed in the river right now[1][5].
Up at the Northwest Angle, the multi-species bite is fantastic. Walleyes are stacking up along the shoreline structure, points, and weed edges, but don’t sleep on the jumbo perch, pike, and especially smallmouth bass—a ton of them are showing up in the shallows and are biting aggressively. May and June are lights out for smallmouth in the Angle—toss a tube jig or small crankbait near rock piles and current breaks for fast action[1].
For best results this week, keep your presentations simple:
- 1/4 to 3/8-ounce jigs with shiner or fathead minnows
- Chartreuse, gold, or pink are top colors
- Nightcrawlers can also seal the deal, especially with warmer days
Hot spots to check out are Four Mile Bay and the west side of Pine Island on the south shore, and up at the Angle, look around Oak Island and the neckdowns between the islands—there’s a lot of current, and the fish are there.
No tides to worry about on the lake, just wind direction and the occasional chop, so dress for the elements and bring an extra layer.
That’s today’s report from your buddy Artificial Lure—tight lines and good luck out there[1][4][5].
We’ve had another classic week up here on the big lake, with a string of fronts leaving anglers with a mix of bluebird days and a few windier sessions. Sunrise this morning was bright and early at 5:19 AM, with sunset coming at 9:16 PM. Minnows and jigs continue to rule the roost this season, and the water’s warming up nicely as we move toward summer—the bite is strong.
Starting with the south shore, walleye action has held up despite the weather changing every other day. Most folks are anchoring up or spot-locking and working a jig tipped with a frozen or live shiner minnow. Vertical jigging right off the edges has been productive at 15 to 22 feet. Some groups have filled their limits of walleyes and saugers, with many nice slot fish in the mix. Remember, you can keep six in combination, with up to four being walleyes and a slot of 19.5 to 28 inches protected—all those need to go back[1][4][5].
The Rainy River has slowed just a little since the opener, but there are still good numbers of eating-size walleyes, and sturgeon anglers wrapped up another excellent spring—local talk is that some real dinosaurs came over the rail before the season closed May 15. Nightcrawlers and minnows are both good options if you’re targeting anything mixed in the river right now[1][5].
Up at the Northwest Angle, the multi-species bite is fantastic. Walleyes are stacking up along the shoreline structure, points, and weed edges, but don’t sleep on the jumbo perch, pike, and especially smallmouth bass—a ton of them are showing up in the shallows and are biting aggressively. May and June are lights out for smallmouth in the Angle—toss a tube jig or small crankbait near rock piles and current breaks for fast action[1].
For best results this week, keep your presentations simple:
- 1/4 to 3/8-ounce jigs with shiner or fathead minnows
- Chartreuse, gold, or pink are top colors
- Nightcrawlers can also seal the deal, especially with warmer days
Hot spots to check out are Four Mile Bay and the west side of Pine Island on the south shore, and up at the Angle, look around Oak Island and the neckdowns between the islands—there’s a lot of current, and the fish are there.
No tides to worry about on the lake, just wind direction and the occasional chop, so dress for the elements and bring an extra layer.
That’s today’s report from your buddy Artificial Lure—tight lines and good luck out there[1][4][5].
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By Quiet. PleaseArtificial Lure here with your fishing report for Lake of the Woods, Minnesota, on Wednesday, May 28, 2025.
We’ve had another classic week up here on the big lake, with a string of fronts leaving anglers with a mix of bluebird days and a few windier sessions. Sunrise this morning was bright and early at 5:19 AM, with sunset coming at 9:16 PM. Minnows and jigs continue to rule the roost this season, and the water’s warming up nicely as we move toward summer—the bite is strong.
Starting with the south shore, walleye action has held up despite the weather changing every other day. Most folks are anchoring up or spot-locking and working a jig tipped with a frozen or live shiner minnow. Vertical jigging right off the edges has been productive at 15 to 22 feet. Some groups have filled their limits of walleyes and saugers, with many nice slot fish in the mix. Remember, you can keep six in combination, with up to four being walleyes and a slot of 19.5 to 28 inches protected—all those need to go back[1][4][5].
The Rainy River has slowed just a little since the opener, but there are still good numbers of eating-size walleyes, and sturgeon anglers wrapped up another excellent spring—local talk is that some real dinosaurs came over the rail before the season closed May 15. Nightcrawlers and minnows are both good options if you’re targeting anything mixed in the river right now[1][5].
Up at the Northwest Angle, the multi-species bite is fantastic. Walleyes are stacking up along the shoreline structure, points, and weed edges, but don’t sleep on the jumbo perch, pike, and especially smallmouth bass—a ton of them are showing up in the shallows and are biting aggressively. May and June are lights out for smallmouth in the Angle—toss a tube jig or small crankbait near rock piles and current breaks for fast action[1].
For best results this week, keep your presentations simple:
- 1/4 to 3/8-ounce jigs with shiner or fathead minnows
- Chartreuse, gold, or pink are top colors
- Nightcrawlers can also seal the deal, especially with warmer days
Hot spots to check out are Four Mile Bay and the west side of Pine Island on the south shore, and up at the Angle, look around Oak Island and the neckdowns between the islands—there’s a lot of current, and the fish are there.
No tides to worry about on the lake, just wind direction and the occasional chop, so dress for the elements and bring an extra layer.
That’s today’s report from your buddy Artificial Lure—tight lines and good luck out there[1][4][5].
We’ve had another classic week up here on the big lake, with a string of fronts leaving anglers with a mix of bluebird days and a few windier sessions. Sunrise this morning was bright and early at 5:19 AM, with sunset coming at 9:16 PM. Minnows and jigs continue to rule the roost this season, and the water’s warming up nicely as we move toward summer—the bite is strong.
Starting with the south shore, walleye action has held up despite the weather changing every other day. Most folks are anchoring up or spot-locking and working a jig tipped with a frozen or live shiner minnow. Vertical jigging right off the edges has been productive at 15 to 22 feet. Some groups have filled their limits of walleyes and saugers, with many nice slot fish in the mix. Remember, you can keep six in combination, with up to four being walleyes and a slot of 19.5 to 28 inches protected—all those need to go back[1][4][5].
The Rainy River has slowed just a little since the opener, but there are still good numbers of eating-size walleyes, and sturgeon anglers wrapped up another excellent spring—local talk is that some real dinosaurs came over the rail before the season closed May 15. Nightcrawlers and minnows are both good options if you’re targeting anything mixed in the river right now[1][5].
Up at the Northwest Angle, the multi-species bite is fantastic. Walleyes are stacking up along the shoreline structure, points, and weed edges, but don’t sleep on the jumbo perch, pike, and especially smallmouth bass—a ton of them are showing up in the shallows and are biting aggressively. May and June are lights out for smallmouth in the Angle—toss a tube jig or small crankbait near rock piles and current breaks for fast action[1].
For best results this week, keep your presentations simple:
- 1/4 to 3/8-ounce jigs with shiner or fathead minnows
- Chartreuse, gold, or pink are top colors
- Nightcrawlers can also seal the deal, especially with warmer days
Hot spots to check out are Four Mile Bay and the west side of Pine Island on the south shore, and up at the Angle, look around Oak Island and the neckdowns between the islands—there’s a lot of current, and the fish are there.
No tides to worry about on the lake, just wind direction and the occasional chop, so dress for the elements and bring an extra layer.
That’s today’s report from your buddy Artificial Lure—tight lines and good luck out there[1][4][5].